The Shadow is "Left in the Dark"

The Shadow recently made his monthly visit to the offices of San Francisco Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi for his monthly Third Friday Art Reception. The featured artist this month was R.A. McBride in a traveling exhibit entitled "Left in the Dark: Portraits of San Francisco Movie Theatres".

One of the photos from the exhibit

The photo exhibit is part of a larger book project that is being collaborated by the artist and Julie Lindow that seeks to look at many of the single-screen theatres in San Francisco (many of which are now closed) through photos and essays.

Another photo from the exhibit

This exhibit will be shown in the Offices of Ross Mirkarimi in San Francisco City Hall through May 16, 2007. The exhibit is available for viewing during normal business hours.

Photographer R.A. McBride and Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi

For more information on the book project, click here. More picutres from the reception are available here.

The Shadow Views New Beginnings

From the ARTWorkSF Art Walk, The Shadow paid a visit to the San Francisco Women Artists Gallery in Laurel Heights to view their monthly show "New Beginnings".

Artists featured in this show are:

• Laura Hollis
• Idell Weiss
• Marilyn Cullen
• Jean Hayward
• Dawn Ming
• Sandra Lo
• Kazuyo Sato-Leue
• Norma Kaline
• Jennifer Mack
• Terry Sauve
• Patsy Watts
• Lynn Dee
• Rita Sklar
• Jess Zepeda, Jr.
• Barbara de Groot
• Pauline Scott
• Sam Cahill
• Leah De Nola
• Ellen Chestnut
• Allie Hyde
• Peggie MacDonald
• Sandra Riker
• Kathleen McMahon
• Carmen Wylie
• Helen Major
• Joan Corrigan
• Bernice Kehoe
• Jennie Wasser
• Carry Swenson

Another work at the exhibit

The show was juried by artist Josie Grant, who gave out several Merit awards to the artists. The show's theme dealt with starting over again -- whether it be a new life, a new situation, a new relationship, etc. With several works to choose from, there was something there for everyone's taste.

Another work at the exhibit

You can view this exhibit at the San Francisco Women Artists Gallery, 3489 Sacramento Street. Gallery hours are Wednesday-Saturday from noon to 5:00 p.m.

Music was provided by Debra McGuire during the reception

More pictures from the reception are here.

The Shadow Has Animal Magnetism

The second show that The Shadow visited during the Art Walk on April 11, 2007 brought him to The Monadnock Building for the opening reception of the show "Animal Magnetism".

One of the works from the exhibit

Artists featured in this show are:

• Charlotte Kay
• Phyllis Rockne
• Lois Llewellyn
• Jennifer Mack
• Dean Gustafson
• AnneKarin Glass
• Blake Tucker
• Midori Matsuyama
• Rosalie Anelli Yerby
• Nancy Rodger
• Donna Schaffer
• Tamar Assaf
• Jack Freeman

Another work from the exhibit

This exhibit brought out the "animal" in the artist and it is reflected in their works -- from a simple sketch to more abstract drawings, the true magnetism of the animal subject comes out.

Curator Matt McKinley description of the show is thus:

In the circle of life, all creatures have a place. In this world we share with animals and insects, recognizing the necessity of diversity is a constant reminder of the delicate balance all creatures affect in environments urban and otherwise. The exhibit celebrates the beauty of both animals and insects through depictions of their strength, grace, character, and humor.

Another work from the exhibit

As mentioned earlier, this exhibit is currently showing at The Monadnock Building, 685 Market Street, in San Francisco. You will find the work in the lobby areas of floors 3, 4, and 5. This exhibit will run through June 27, 2007.

More pictures from the exhibit are here.

The Shadow View The Authentic Self

ARTWorkSF tried an experiment that The Shadow thinks worked very well, although it required The Shadow to go through a little physical activity. ARTWorkSF held its first "Art Walk" on April 11, 2007 which included the Mixed Messages show described below. The other two shows we will deal with separately.

The first show that The Shadow visited during this Art Walk was the opening reception for "The Authentic Self".

One of the works from the exhibit

Artists showing at this exhibit are:

• R.E. Roberts
• Christiane Tsouo-Harvey
• Pauline Crowther Scott
• Nick Wightman
• AnneKarin Glass
• Maja-Yvette Saphir
• Blake Tucker
• Robert Bradshaw
• Barbara Elliott
• Anahid
• Heather Hanan
• Shawna Marie Scarpitti
• Genea Barnes
• Will Bullas
• Fong Fai

Another work from the exhibit

The curators for this exhibit are Nick Wightman and Matt McKinley. Their commentary on this exhibit is thus:

Through literal or abstract rendering, the artist's challenge in portraiture is to capture something unique in their subject; an expression, facial features, body posture, or overall energy that makes them distinct and recognizable. A portrait captures a moment in time, a particular mood, a seasoned life, or even an exciting future yet to come. Regardless of how the artist chooses to depict their subject, their strokes and snapshots celebrate the uniqueness of being an individual.

Some portraits break from tradition and de-emphasize individuality by blending the figure into a mass of faces. Others depict a person or group of people basking in the center of attention. The portrait can be a window into the psyche, expressing a rich collage of inner selves that have their own personalities. These many layers cause us to look twice catching something more with each glance.

A unique self-portrait showing at the exhibit

This exhibit will be showing at the Hotel Triton, 342 Grant Street, in San Francisco, in their Mezzanine Gallery. The exhibit is open 24/7 through May 2, 2007.

The Shadow would also like to point out that a percentage of proceeds from the sale of work at this exhibit will benefit the San Francisco Artists Resource Center.

More pictures from the exhibit are available here.

The Shadow Has Mixed Messages

ARTWorkSF's First Thursday for the month of April was fantastic body of work and appropriately titled "Mixed Messages".

An interesting view of the Golden Gate Bridge at the exhibit

Artists at this show included the following:

• Steven Haas
• Simon Dye
• Karen Gutfreund
• Shawna Scarpitti
• Taiko Fujimura
• Alan Mazzetti
• Ann Sims
• Rosalie Anelli Yerby
• Michael Azgour
• Les Phillips
• AnneKarin Glass
• James Walsh
• Scott Wyman

This show was titled thus because all works shown here used more than one type of media. The above artists have quite a knack for putting these media together to come up with spectacular work.

Another work from the exhibit

Curator Matt McKinley describes the show as thus:

Creating new relationships between previously unrelated materials and objects allows materials insouciant in their first "life" to become "extroverted" through intentional reinterpretation. The visual texture found in mixed media, assemblage and collage creations becomes a metaphor for the "conversation" between component parts of a work. Because we process three dimensional objects as part of our environment we can potentially interact with, mixed media works that incorporate physical versus rendered objects manipulate the association of volume with physical presence in order to focus one's attention on particular details. By skillfully directing our gaze around highlighted details, mixed media artists "ask" open-ended questions about an object's raison d'etre by creating new realities.

Artist Alan Mazzetti with one of his works

This exhibit just closed, but if you are interested in any of the works that were shown there, you can contact ARTWorkSF Gallery directly.

For more pictures from the reception, click here.

The Shadow Bids Adieu to Another Artist

Though this is a couple of weeks late, The Shadow was saddened to say good-bye to another artist from the Bay Area.

On Thursday, March 29, 2007, Photographer Jo Farrell held her last solo art exhibit in the Bay Area. The exhibit was shown at the ARTWorkSF Gallery in Downtown San Francisco.

Photographer Jo Farrell (left) talks with an art patron at exhibit

For the past few years, Jo has taken stunning black and white photos in China, Cuba and Tibet. This exhibit allowed her to say good-bye to her fans as Jo prepared to move to Hong Kong to continue her work.

One of the many photos from Jo Farrell at the exhibit

A reprint from the San Francisco Chronicle on Jo. You can view the full article here

Jo was one of the first artists that The Shadow met when he came into contact with ARTWorkSF. Her work is some of the best photography that we have ever seen. Jo published some of her photos in a coffee table book entitled Jo Farrell Photography: 1.


The Shadow with Photographer Jo Farrel with a copy of her book

Singer Carmen Milagro performed during the reception

This exhibit has now ended and Jo has left the Bay Area. However, you can still keep up with her doings and buy her book and photos at her website.

For more pictures from the reception (including more photos from Jo) click here.